Green Evil
by Apolena Soleil
Summary: Origin Leonhart is the beautiful yet impulsive daughter of Squall and Rinoa Leonhart. However, once she learns of a secret in her past, the world she knew is turned upside-down and her life is changed forever... *Reviews are appreciated!*
1. The New Characters (Just Descriptions)

Green Evil

****

Starring…

ORIGIN LEONHART

Age: 16

DOB: August 25th

Hometown: Balamb

HT: 5'9"

Blood Type: B

Weapon: Gloves; Inherited Sorceress Powers 

Hair/Eyes: Long Jet Black w/ Vivid Silver Streaks; Amethyst (like a lavender) 

~*An impulsive, beautiful, and talented youth attending Balamb Garden, aspiring to be a SeeD. Daughter of Squall/Rinoa Leonhart, youngest sister to Jaira and Nikola Leonhart.*~

JAIRA LEONHART

Age: 18

DOB: October 13th

Hometown: Balamb

HT: 5'6" 3/4

Blood Type: O

Weapon: Mace (That Spiky Ball on a Stick); Mallet

Hair/Eyes: Medium Length Blond; Black 

~*An outgoing yet mysterious girl. The middle sister of Nikola and Origin. She has a bubbly personality that seems to be devoid of seriousness until confronted with a risky situation.*~

NIKOLA LEONHART

Age: 19

DOB: April 3rd

Hometown: Balamb

HT: 5'10"

Blood Type: AB

Weapon: Crossbow (However, Nikola hates fighting)

Hair/Eyes: Long Light Brown/Blonde Hair; Bright Cerulean

~*The sweet and silent older sister of Jaira and Origin. She knows a lot more about the past than her sisters. Tries to make up for their lack of a parent, but with no avail. Normally is a very laid-back person, but will fight for what she feels is right.*~ 

KIRAN ALMASY

Age: 17

DOB: November 21st

Hometown: Deling City (Currently lives in Balamb to attend Garden)

HT: 5'7" 1/4

Blood Type: B

Weapon: Staff

Hair/Eyes: Very Long Black; Black

~*A smart, hot-tempered and extremely stubborn girl attending Balamb Garden. Daughter of Seifer/Quistis Almasy. The complete opposite of her brother, Yoshiro. She is extremely devoted to her goals and won't stop until she reaches them (in most cases).*~

TSUYOSHIRO 'YOSHIRO' ALMASY 

Age: 18

DOB: July 15th

Hometown: Deling City (Current residence is Balamb to attend Garden.)

HT: 6'

Blood Type: A

Weapon: Gunblade

Hair/Eyes: Light Blonde; Deep, Forest Green/Blue (slightly resembles Seifer, but looks more like his mother, Quistis)

~*A young SeeD with a heart of solid gold. Kiran's older brother. Vies with Justice for the attention of Origin, because he falls in love at first sight.*~

AIDAN KINNEAS

Age: 20

DOB: September 1st

Hometown: Timber (Lives in Balamb on his own to attend Garden)

HT: 5'10" 1/2

Blood Type: O

Weapon: Gun

Hair/Eyes: Blond; Brown (resembles Irvine)

~*Irvine's and Selphie's oldest son. Aidan is a strong, determined young SeeD and Justice's older brother. He has an obvious soft spot for Nikola Leonhart, though it's not quite love. Due to the problems that his parents have been facing, he was forced to grow up quickly to look after Justice and Iari.*~

JUSTICE KINNEAS

Age: 15

DOB: June 17th

Hometown: Timber (Lives in Balamb Garden)

HT: 5'5"

Blood Type: A

Weapon: Gun

Hair/Eyes: Brown; Green 

~*Aidan's younger brother. Justice is almost a carbon copy of his brother, but he is much more flirtatious. He is pressured by becoming just like Aidan, as well as all the problems with his parents. Also, he seems to be captivated by Origin's personality, yet would never, EVER admit it to anyone.*~

KANOTSU LOIRE

Age: 19

DOB: January 4th

Hometown: Born in Winhill, raised in Esthar

HT: 6'2"

Blood Type: B

Weapon: Gunblade (Aspires to be like his deceased uncle)

Hair/Eyes: Strawberry Blonde; Green

~*Ellone's adopted son and only cousin to Origin, Jaira, and Nikola. Kanotsu is a top ranking, well respected SeeD, but has a cold (yet **not** truly aloof) exterior. He also seems to be more than what meets the eye…*~ 

IARI KINNEAS

Age: 12

DOB: December 7th

Hometown: Timber 

HT: 5'

Blood Type: B

Weapon: Gloves (due to her age, doesn't really fight)

Hair/Eyes: Dark Brown; Emerald

~*Iari is Irvine's and Selphie's youngest child. Incredibly intelligent yet very spirited, she doesn't quite understand why her parents always fight. She confides in Origin and looks up to her as an older sister.*~

****

OH YES…and so everyone knows…

Squall: 38

Rinoa: 38

Zell: 38

Irvine: 38

Selphie: 38

Quistis: 39

Seifer: 39

Ellone: 39

AUTHOR NOTES:

I just feel like I need to bring this to everyone's attention. "Green Evil" is as true to real life as it can possibly be. Most generation fics like this are like, "Oh, Rin and Squall are happy, Selph and Irvine are happy, Quisty and Seifer are happy, and they all have children that are carbon copies of them!" Don't get me wrong, they're probably great fics, but I've decided to turn the tables a little. Life isn't always perfect, you know. So this is the "imperfect" generation fic, I suppose. Heehee


	2. The Wrong Words

"Green Evil"

Disclaimer: OK, before we get the ball rolling…FF8 does not belong to me. Origin, Nikola, Jaira…all of them do, however. So does the storyline. But that's it…

Nature's finest green is gold

Her hardest hue to hold

Her early leaf's a flower

But only so an hour

Then leaf subsides to leaf

So Eden sank to grief

So dawn goes down to day

Nothing gold can stay.

"C'mon girl! Kick, punch…block!!"

This is just an example of another training session from Zell Dincht. I tried desperately to follow his metronome, but for the third time I fell on the gravel. Zell sighed and helped me up.

"Origin, with skills like that, I'm surprised you made SeeD."

I brushed some silver hair off my damp forehead. "Aw, be quiet. I'm trying as hard as I could here." Zell rolled his eyes. "Fine, you want to see my moves? Right now!" Almost instantly my fists were up--I wanted and needed more training.

"Maybe next time." Zell smiled. "If I don't get you home, Rinoa's gonna go stir-crazy."

I looked at Zell and grinned. He was best friends with my mother, Rinoa Heartilly/Leonhart. My mom, dad, and him helped save the planet about nineteen years ago with three other people I now know as two aunts and an uncle. But now, my father--Commander Squall Leonhart--is dead. Sometimes I wondered if Zell ever took his place, but in my heart I knew he didn't. He just came to live with my mom, my sisters, and me after my dad died. Nikola was only three at that time--Jaira was two, and my mom was pregnant with me, so I couldn't tell you a thing about the great man that was my father. Yes, I have seen pictures of him…he looks so much like Nikola. Jaira is an exact copy of mom…and I'm just a crazy hybrid between them both. I guess that's why people mistake me for Zell's daughter, because since I don't really look like either of my two biological parents, they assume Zell is my dad. Although he's cool as a friend, I don't think he'd be a good father. But that's just my opinion. Maybe he _would_ be good at it…I don't know. Who am I to judge?

"My mom goes stir-crazy with anything anymore. You should know that." My gloves, Zell's hand me downs (his Ehergiez), were sliding off my hands. I pulled them up a bit. "Whether it be Nikola talking about Aidan or Jaira over practicing for SeeD or me training with you in my spare time…I couldn't tell ya what made her that way."  


Zell laughed. "Rinoa was always like that. It's just that she's a bit overwhelmed with everything, that's all."

I grinned and made my way towards the car. "Well, I think you could do a bit more to help out too, Zell."

"Like what?" He rubbed my head. "I already take care of your training. _That's_ difficult enough, from what I saw right now."

"Are you implying that I'm terrible when it comes to fighting?" I asked, giggling.

"All I'm sayin is that you need lots more practice." Zell hopped in the driver's seat of the car. 

I sat in the passenger seat. "You know…I think I have a great idea of how you can help out!"

"Really?"

"Yeah…" I grinned. "You should marry my mom. Then you would be _just_ like family! It would be _so_ great!" Zell suddenly fell silent and looked away from me. I could feel my face turn red-hot. "Oh…I'm sorry. Guess I shouldn't have said that…"

Zell didn't look at me. "No, that's all right. That just never came to mind." He stared out in front. "I could never be the man your father was."

"But…you're just like my dad. I couldn't imagine a better person to take the job."

"Imagine the guy you always see in the pictures." Zell sighed, then started up the car.

I sat back in my seat. _Oh…I really shouldn't have said that. I'm such a dummy! But…I wonder what was so great about my dad that Zell can't be…hmm… _The car jumped to a start, then rolled onto the road. There was nothing I could think of to fix what I said, so I just stayed silent on the ride home. Zell looked like he wanted to open his mouth and say something, but he never did.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Nikola was sitting outside with Aidan when we arrived in Balamb. He had an oh-so-obvious crush on my big sister. I liked him a lot…it was his brother, Justice, that was the problem child. Justice was a year younger than me, but he was hyper and flirty at the same time…and it didn't really equal up to much.

"Hey Origin," Aidan said as I walked up to the two of them. His soft brown eyes smiled at me. I could feel my cheeks turn pink. Nikola smiled in my direction, but gave me a look that said "Get out of here. Now." So, being the considerate sister I am, I excused myself and walked into the kitchen.

"Origin!" Jaira yelled when she saw me. "How's my favorite baby sister?" She grinned. Her light blonde hair was frizzy from the little bit of humidity in the air. I rolled my eyes at Jaira and sat down at the table. Although I got along better with her than Nikola, she was so much louder and spontaneous--like me. I didn't mind though, because she always could control herself when she needed to. "How was your day with Uncle Zell?"

Both of my sisters called him "Uncle" Zell, because they still had a vague memory of my dad and weren't used to calling him Zell. "I had an all right time…" I trailed off and ran my fingers through my hair. 

"All right? Usually you love your training." Jaira then leaned and whispered into my ear, "Hey, did you see Aidan and Nikola outside? It's sooo obvious that he really likes her…" She then erupted into giggles, because the two of them walked into the door. "Heyyy!"

"Hi," Nikola and Aidan replied at the same time. I looked at Jaira, then began to laugh. "What?" They asked again, simultaneously.

"Blondes," I said, giggling. (Although my sister had brown hair, it was light enough to be blonde.) Nikola frowned at me. "Sorry…so, what's up?"

"Nothing much. Aidan was just telling me about SeeD exams." Nikola sat next to me at the table and traced her fingers on the wood surface. "Justice _still_ didn't make it."

"Obviously." I sighed. "He's way too immature." Aidan looked at me and smiled, shaking his head. 

Jaira looked at Nikola. "Hey, where's mom?"

"I don't know. She said she was going down to the train station. I couldn't think of a reason why she would go." Nikola sighed. "Mom's been really uptight lately."

"You know, Nikola…I should go." Aidan looked at her and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "I have stuff to do. And I'm sure you do, too."

"Yeah…" Nikola sighed. "I'll see you around, OK?" Aidan nodded and kissed her on the cheek, then walked through the door. As soon as he left, we all erupted into squeals and giggles. "Ahh! He kissed me!" My sister was grinning ear-to-ear. She was so in love with Aidan it was ridiculous.

"You two are sooo _cute_ together!" Jaira said. "Don't you think, Origin?"

"Uh-huh." I said with a little less enthusiasm. I always liked Aidan…and he always liked Nikola. He knew I liked him, but…oh well. Hopefully, there were more fish in the sea. "Adorable."

Suddenly, my mom and Zell came walking in the door. "Hey, girls." She said and put her things down. "Guess what?"

"What?" The three of us said.

"Your Aunt Ellone is coming to visit with your cousin!" Mom smiled.

I looked at her in disbelief. "I never knew we had a cousin!"

"Really?" I guess mom forgot. "I think you'll like him. His name is Kanotsu. He's a top ranking SeeD in Balamb Garden. You probably saw him and never recognized him. He's adopted, you know."

"Adopted?" Jaira asked. "Like, not a blood relative?"

"No duh." Nikola said. Then, she said, "Uncle Zell, is there a reason why you're so quiet?"

"Nah. Just thinking." He glanced over at my mom with his bright blue eyes, then back to the floor.

"'Bout what?" Jaira asked. She was always so nosy.

"Nothing all that important." Zell looked at me. "Hey, kid…wanna go for a walk?"

"Sure!" I jumped up out of my seat. Jaira immediately followed me. "Jaira…you comin?"

"If Uncle Zell lets me." She smiled at him, and he motioned for her to follow. The three of us walked into the early evening air. The sun was setting on the horizon, and it gave the city a warm orangey glow. 

"Wow…" I said, gazing out at the ocean. "So pretty…"

"Yeah. I remember watchin the sunset with your mom, your dad, and everyone else when I was your age." Zell smiled to himself. "I miss it."

"You mean Selphie, Irvine, Seifer, Quistis, and Aunt Ellone?" Jaira asked.

"Not Ellone. She didn't go to Balamb Garden…so we didn't see her often. Neither did Irvine, but he transferred from Galbadia." 

"Oh." Jaira poked me in the shoulder. "Hey, is that one of your crowd?"

"Huh?" I looked out in front of me. "Oh…Kiran." She was Quistis's and Seifer's daughter, and definitely not one of my crowd. Kiran was probably the meanest person I had ever met. I could never figure out why she was like that. Maybe because her dad died alongside my dad (and she was alive when it happened)…that was probably it. Something like that can't do much good for a person. However, I did admire her fighting skills…I guess I'd give her that much.

Her black eyes saw right through my amethyst ones as she walked past me. "How mean can you possibly get?" I said out loud after she was gone.

"I don't know. She's like, the queen of evil." Jaira giggled a little.

"You don't mean that's _Quisty's_ girl?" Zell asked.

"Yeah. You didn't know that? She never liked me. I can't figure that out." I said softly. "Her brother, Yoshiro, is really nice, though."

"Well…I wouldn't have known that was Quisty's and Seifer's daughter in a thousand years. She certainly doesn't look or act like either of them." Zell paused. "Maybe like Seifer did a long time ago…"

Jaira giggled. "It's funny how Kiran and Yoshiro are so different. Kiran is like, a demon from hell…when Yoshiro is practically a saint or something." I laughed. "Yoshiro's really _really_ cute, too." She winked at me. "I think he's got his eye on you."

"No!" I shook my head. "No way. Yoshiro doesn't like _me_. He's eighteen. There's probably so many girls he can choose from. He doesn't like me."

"Hey, ya never know." Jaira smiled, then looked at her watch. "Oh! I forgot! I have homework!" She started to run back home. "See ya!"

I watched my older sister run away. "So…" Zell looked at me. "_You_ think Yoshiro likes me?"  
  
Zell laughed. "I don't know. I haven't ever really seen their kids in a long time. I'm only close to you and your sisters anymore."

"Oh." I smiled. "You never really go for walks anymore." I said after a pause. "What's up?"

"Well…I just wanted to talk to you about what you said today." I froze. "What? I'm not taking it seriously, if that's what you're thinkin. I just wanted to clear up anything that you were thinking…I could never marry Rin--um, your mom. We're just friends." He fell silent.

I thought this was a good opportunity to ask him what was on my mind ever since we came home, so I asked, "Um…Zell? Could you tell me about my dad?"

He stopped walking. "Squall?" I could tell he was very uneasy when it came to my dad. "He was…um, a good guy."

"A good guy? There's gotta be more than that…?" I walked over to a nearby bench and sat down. "I mean…he's my dad." 

Zell sat next to me. "I know…but there ain't much I can say that's already been said. He was commander of Balamb Garden…kinda quiet. Kept to himself a lot. It feels like just yesterday he met Rinoa and totally changed. I mean…it was practically overnight." Zell gazed up at the sky.

"But how was he like…like, after Ultimecia?"

"Different. A lot more open. And him and Rinoa were never apart. When Nikola and Jaira came along, you couldn't find a happier guy around."

"Oh."

"And I remember the day Rinoa found out she was having you." Zell laughed to himself. "Squall was bouncing off the walls like…like Jaira. I _never_ saw him like that." He shook his head. "Then…only, probably a month or two after you were definite…Squall and Seifer Almasy went out on a SeeD mission and never came back." I shut my eyes…I didn't want to hear that. "Rinoa and Quistis were both a wreck after that. It wasn't good for Rinoa, though, cause she was pregnant. And Quistis already had her two. I offered to help Quisty and your mom, but your mom was the only one who wanted it. Quistis said she could handle it…and she did. Quisty's tough, let me tell you. But Rinoa had two and one on the way…so she needed a helping hand. I had nowhere to go--except for Garden--so I moved in with you four."

"…oh." I repeated. 

"Yeah…" Zell stood up. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not in the mood to really be hanging around here. I'm headin' back."

"I'll stay here for a while." I looked up at Zell and smiled. "See ya."

He started to walk back, but I could sense him standing there and watching me for a moment. I didn't turn around though, and he walked away soon enough. Sometimes, Zell was so convincing _I _thought he was my father. But, deep in my heart I knew that the blood coursing through my veins was genuine Leonhart. The wind picked up a bit, and I sighed. Suddenly, I heard soft crying and feet from behind me. I whirled around.

"Justice?" I asked, staring into a boy's green eyes that were captivating, but so sad. "Are you all right?"

"Does it look like it?" He replied, rubbing a tear off his pale cheek.

"No." I said flatly, embarrassed. Justice sat down next to me. "What in Hyne happened to you?"

"Mom and Dad came to visit." Justice said. My uncle and aunt, Selphie and Irvine, never got married. Plus, as they were getting older, their relationship began to fall apart. That was one of the reasons Aidan and Justice went to live in Balamb Garden--so they didn't have to listen to their parent's constant bickering. I guess they just had two completely different personalities that just didn't mix after knowing each other for such a long time. "At first, it was fine. But then they just start complaining over nothing and it's just so…painful."

I stared at the ground. Selphie and Irvine were never that close to me, although I've heard wonderful stories about them. Justice wiped away another tear. "Don't worry, Justice." He buried his face in his hands. "You know…maybe you should try talking to them."

"You think I didn't try that?" Justice asked. The orangey haze made his skin glow, despite his red coloring from crying. "You think they _listen_?"

__

Poor Justice. He never cries. This had to be bad. I put my arm around his shoulders. "Don't cry. Hey, you can stay at my house for a while if you want to."

He sniffled softly…I wasn't used to seeing him so vulnerable. "All right…maybe for a while. If you and your mom don't mind." 

"I don't mind." Then, I remembered something. "Yeah, my cousin's comin over, too. Maybe you two can hang out or something."

"OK." Justice seemed to brighten up a little bit. "I'll have to call Aidan though…"

"That's no problem." I stood up. "Come on. It'll take like, five minutes to walk to my house." 

Justice stood up. "Thanks, Origin. You're all right…" Then he added, "for a girl."

"Excuse me? " I glared at him playfully.

He held up his hands. "Nothing, nothing." Then, he started off in a run for my house, me quick on his heels. His mood seemed to change on a whim.

__

Immature, maybe…but a real nice guy.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

OK, OK…before I'm massacred with flames…yeah, I had to kill Squall and Seifer. ::dodges random rotten produce:: I'm sorry! I love them! Seifer is sexy! LoL But I had to…just wait, okies?

"Nothing Gold Can Stay" is by Robert Frost…he's a really good poet.


	3. Yoshiro

~*Chapter Two*~

Justice and I walked to my house almost in complete silence. Usually, we weren't the two kids you'd always see hanging together. We would feel each other out a bit, but then completely ignore each other. He was almost always with his own friends from Balamb Garden, and I hung around my sisters. Once, I saw Justice with Yoshiro….but just _once._

"Hey…" Justice began.

"What?"

"How old is your cousin?"

"Kanotsu?" I thought for a moment. "Well…I think he's 19. I don't know."

Justice looked at me skeptically. "You _think?"_

"Yeah." I brushed some hair from my eyes. "My aunt found Kanotsu about ten years ago when he was about eight or nine…during that little disagreement with the three Gardens, and SeeDs were stationed in Esthar. I know you probably don't remember but…anyway, she went to each Garden to find information about him, but all she discovered was that he was born January 4th in Winhill. She adopted him and renamed him, and just five years ago she enrolled him in Balamb Garden." I smiled. "My mom told me Kanotsu has a natural talent for the gunblade. But I've never met him, though. Which is surprising, because I go to Garden too…you know that…"

"Yes, I do." Justice sighed. "I was hoping he knew how to shoot a gun. Then he'd be able to help me."

"You need all the help you can get, Justice Kinneas." I grinned. Justice frowned at me, then smiled. "I've seen you before. You couldn't shoot your way out of a paper bag!"

That made him mad. Justice narrowed his eyes. "When you insult a man's sharpshooting, you've gone too far!" I took off at a run with Justice on my heels. "C'mere!"

"No! You really think that I'd --"

Suddenly, I bumped into someone and fell on the ground. I looked up at the person I collided with. "Oh, I'm really really _reaaaaally_ sorry!" I apologized.

The man looked me over carefully. I stood there, awkwardly. "I've seen you before." He said after a minute.

"Excuse me?"

"Origin Leonhart?"

Justice walked up behind me. "Who's that?" He asked me.

"Yeah, I'm Origin." I said, ignoring Justice.

The man extended a hand to me. "I'm Kanotsu."

I looked at him in disbelief. Then I shook his hand, realizing it was extended to me. "Wow. Hello!" He looked at me in an amusing manner. "Oops…sorry. It's just so…good to see you."

"It's nice to see you, too. Actually, I've seen you around Garden with no idea you were my cousin."

"Me too…Hyne, it's so cool to match your name with your face." 

"Hey! What's goin on here?" Justice piped. 

"This is Kanotsu." I said, introducing my cousin to Justice. "Kanotsu, this is Justice Kinneas. My friend…sort of. He's staying over tonight."

Justice grinned. "'Sup?"

Kanotsu looked at him the same way he looked at me. "…hi."

"So…did you meet Jaira and Nikola yet?" I asked. "And where's Aunt Ellone?"

"My mom is at your house. I saw your sisters, but I've yet to meet them. Your mom sent me out to look for you."

"Oh. That's good." I nodded. _'I've yet?' I admire those grammar skills! _"Welp, shall we get a move on?" 

"Yes, lets." Justice grabbed me by the arm. "Is your cousin all right in the head?" He whispered.

I punched him lightly in the head. "Justice! That's not nice to say. You never know…when you _finally_ get into SeeD, he might save your butt." 

That shut Justice up.

Kanotsu followed the two of us as we speed walked home.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Justice! Where were you?!"

The three of us walked home to my mom, Jaira, Nikola, Zell, Aunt Ellone, Aidan, Justice's parents, and his little sister, Iari (who was enveloped in a book and not really paying attention to anything). His mother, Selphie, was livid.

"Hi, mom." Justice sat in a seat at my kitchen table.

"I asked you a question!" Selphie looked at me. "Origin, where'd you find him?"

"I was hangin' out when he came running. Aunt Selph, he wasn't any trouble. I swear it."

"Well, thanks for watching him." Irvine said, casting a glance at Selphie. "We should really get going."

"Irvine, why not stay awhile?" My mom asked him. "It's really no big deal…"

"No. I'm sorry Rin, but we've got some stuff to do. Especially since the whole parade thing is being organized at Garden…"

"Parade thing?" I sat next to Justice. "What's that? I haven't heard of any parade."

"Balamb Garden is holding an inauguration for the new Commander. And a parade was the perfect way to welcome him…or her. We don't know who it is." Irvine smiled. "The information's sort of classified." 

"Hey, I would imagine that." Jaira piped up. Nikola sighed and stepped lightly on her foot. 

My mother looked at Kanotsu for a quick second. "Who is this handsome young man?" She asked Aunt Ellone.

"This is Kanotsu." My aunt walked up to her son and smiled. "Where in Hyne were you anyway?"

"Nowhere in particular." 

I noticed that my cousin was really…well, austere in his appearance. His eyes seemed to be devoid of emotion, and he was as straight as a board standing there. _I actually wouldn't be surprised if he was the new Commander. Sure has the discipline._

"Well, it's nice for you to be here at last, Kanotsu. Little did we know you attended Garden." My mom smiled softly at him.

"Little did I know I had family here." He bowed slightly in return. "Excuse me…" Then he walked out.

Nikola grabbed Jaira and I by our arms. "Let's go upstairs…" When we wouldn't move, she jerked our arms. "Now?"

"Oh…" Jaira and I said, smiling fakely. We knew that when Nikola wanted to leave, with _us_ no less, she had something to say. "Excuse us."

We ran upstairs to Nikola's room. It was the farthest from the stairs, so if anyone came to check on us they wouldn't hear a word. I sat on her bed and smoothed out my hair. Nikola locked the door and leaned against the wall. "You know….I find it hard to believe that we didn't even recognize our own cousin in Garden."

"Well…we've never even seen pictures of him." Jaira mentioned. "How would we have known?" She sighed. "And I've only seen him once or twice…which I hardly remember. Probably Garden has him stationed all over the world, since he's such a good SeeD."

"He's so _serious_…" I looked down at the floor. "When I first met him…there was this whole…feeling I got from him." Nikola looked at me. She was always thoughtful when we had our serious talks. It was her responsibility as oldest sister. "It was…power. Almost like when I see pictures of Dad."

Jaira stabbed her index finger in the air. "But what I don't get is that why Aunt Ellone never sent us pictures or anything. That's weird. Like….like….."

"He was under some sort of protection!" Nikola stated. "That makes sense. I mean, what other reason would there be to not tell us about Kanotsu?"

"I don't think he's under protection. Isn't that a bit much, you guys?" Nikola nodded after thinking about my comment for a moment. I sighed. "He reminds me of Dad. The power that I saw in his eyes…was beyond me."

Suddenly, the door opened, knocking Jaira to the floor. "Oh…sorry, Jaira." Aidan smiled from the hall.

"I'll live. Don't worry about it."

He moved over to Nikola's huge bay window. "Look out there." I helped Jaira up as Nikola walked over to Aidan, putting a hand on his back. The two of us squeezed in and peered out at the sky. It turned into one of those sweet moments in time where everyone is so thoughtful and quiet…

"Wow! I've never noticed that before." Jaira pointed at an unusually large star in the sky.

"That's 'cause it's never been there." I whispered and stared into the black twilight. Then, I glanced over at Aidan. There was a mixture of awe and worry in his face. I knew that this star was only half the reason he came up here. His parents' constant fighting probably got to him again…I felt really bad. This must've tore him apart.

"Hey…is that Kanotsu down there?" Nikola asked. A figure was stabbing the air with a shiny, silver gunblade. The expertise and accuracy in him could fare against twenty people.

"I really can't tell." I grinned. "Hey, I'll go check." Deciding to surprise my sisters, I opened the window and started to climb out on an impulse.

"Are you insane?!" Nikola yelled. 

"Possibly."

"Look, it doesn't even really matter, Origin. He probably wants to be alone…"

"Just keep the window open for me, ok?" I turned around so I was facing Aidan, then I lowered myself out the window. There was one of those fence things on the walls of our house, so it was fairly easy to climb down. I hit the ground with a soft thud and ran over to the figure. "Hey, Kanotsu!"

But it wasn't Kanotsu. 

"Y-y-y….." It was Tsuyoshiro -- known to everyone as _Yoshiro_ -- Almasy. _Oh Hyne strike me dead here and now… _"Sorry." I turned and started to walk back towards the wall.

"Hey, you don't have to go just yet, do you?" I froze in my tracks. "I mean, I saw you climbing from the second story in your house…did you have something to say?"

"No, er…not really. I thought you were my cousin." 

"Oh. Well…" he held his hand out to me. A sweet gesture…his clear, green-bluish eyes gazed into mine, and I felt my heart melt. "I guess I could walk you back to your…wall."

I grinned and slipped my hand into his. "Hey…why were you out here so late?"

"My mom is coming to visit tomorrow from Winhill. She hates it when I practice…so I'm just getting my kicks in now. And I love the view from this part of Balamb…it makes it easier to think when you have something nice to look at."

"Oh…" 

"That's why I was hopin' you'd hang around…"

I felt my cheeks flush and my stomach twist…compliments usually did that to me. "Well…here's my wall." Before I got a foot off the ground to climb back up, Yoshiro grabbed my arm.

"Wait!" He smiled. "Is there a name behind the face?"

"Leonhart. Origin Leonhart." It's been hideously overused, but at the moment it seemed to be the most dramatic way to introduce myself.

"Oh…you're Squall's daughter. I know you. I really respect your parents…they're amazing people."

"Thanks," I replied.

"…well, I really have to go." Yoshiro smiled warmly. "I guess I'll be seeing more of you, then?" I nodded, and he began to walk away. "OK! Good night…Origin."

"…bye, Yoshiro."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


End file.
